Tuesday, 19 March 2013

In my opinion, vegetarianism is a rapidly expanding diet trend, and like most other trends it is supported by a long list of celebrity advocates.

Celebrities have some kind of power over the consumer markets and tend to influence the decisions people make. Katy Perry is noted for her "cute, girly, vintage" style, and next thing you know, every teenaged girl is sporting the same style. Jessica Biel is seen practising yoga on the beach, and the relaxing meditation method becomes the "hottest" exercise.

You get the point, celebrities do something, and we mimic it.

Becoming vegetarian is one of those things that celebrities do and the public expresses an interest. We have a strange inclination to follow the choices made by our favourite celebs. It's almost as though they promote these trends, such as becoming vegetarian, just by doing it.

Celebrities have the ability to bring issues into the spotlight and generate public discussion. When we hear that a well-known celebrity has recently adopted a vegetarian lifestyle we wonder why and we want to know more about their decision.

This interest leads to increased focus on vegetarianism and oftentimes leads to some celeb fans making the decision to adopt this lifestyle for themselves. Here is a list of just a few celebrity vegetarians:

Wednesday, 13 March 2013

As a vegetarian I do not have many relationships with others
like myself. All of my closest friends
and family are omnivores, so meat is always present.

In some cases I would imagine this could cause
problems. Living in a house full of
hard-core meat-eaters when you can’t stand the thought of eating animals can be
a major issue for some vegetarians.
Trying to sustain a vegetarian lifestyle when you can’t eat any of the
groceries brought into the house is also a frustration. Refusing to eat something that has come in
contact with meat in any way, but someone else is cooking your meal …

Yes, there are many difficulties being the only vegetarian
in a group.

My boyfriend is a dedicated
meat-eater. The guy eats meat every day
and more than just once. He loves his
steaks and chicken wings and burgers; all things that I find absolutely
repulsive. In addition, he practically
refuses to eat vegetables, which are what constitute about 90% of my diet.

So, how do on earth do we manage
to make meals together??

We have managed to find a common
ground – pizza!

Pizza is one of the greatest foods
for people with opposing dietary preferences.
The base is the same, but you have total freedom with the toppings. Plus, pizzas very easily divide into equal
parts, so I can load up my side with peppers, tomatoes, olives and mushrooms,
and my boyfriend can put as much pepperoni as he wants on his side.

Sunday, 3 March 2013

Just in case you didn't feel
satisfied by the information in my last post, I thought I would provide a more
detailed account on vegetarian/vegan friendly protein sources.

The soybean is an important
protein in any meat-free diet. Soybeans
contain all essential amino acids – there are 10 – and provide a respective
amount of protein to the human body.

Soybeans can be consumed in their
original form, and actually make a great addition to your favourite trail-mix,
but they can also be found in a wide variety of soy-based products. Soy milk, tofu, veggie burgers and dogs are
only a few of the products available to vegetarians and vegans. The soybeans are miraculous in that the many
different forms take on a variety of flavours guaranteed to satisfy a range of
tastes.

Aside from soybeans,
vegetarian/vegan protein comes from sources such as:

And the list goes on. So, as you can see, there are a wide range of
proteins available to those who chose not to eat meat. These options offer a variety of textures and
tastes of which you’ll surely never be bored.

Oh, and one last thing, to further
support my previous claim that people tend to think we need more protein than
is necessary, The Happy Cow says that “we need only 2.5 – 10% of our calories
from protein, and ALL vegetables offer us more than that.”

Thursday, 28 February 2013

Non-vegetarians have a tendency to
think that if you don’t eat meat than you must not have any protein in your
diet. This is completely untrue as there
are a number of non-meat, or plant based, proteins which provide the same
nutritional value as meat.

“Proteins are made up of amino acids, of which there are 20,
and eight of these need to be supplied by diet” (Graimes, 2010). A food that contains eight amino acids is
called a ‘complete’ protein – it is a high quality protein. For vegetarians the complete proteins are
eggs, dairy products and soya beans.
Other sources of protein, such as nuts, legumes, pasta, potatoes and rice,
do not contain all eight amino acids and are therefore considered ‘incomplete’
proteins. A balanced combination of
‘incomplete’ proteins can have similar benefits as a ‘complete’ protein.

I find non-vegetarians are overly concerned with the amount
of protein in a diet and they have this unfounded idea that large quantities of
protein are essential to good health.
However, in reality, most people consume more protein than they
need.

In her book on vegetarian diet and health, Nicola Graimes
says that protein deficiency is basically unheard of and, in fact, “an excess
of protein can be detrimental, rather than beneficial to health.” Graimes explains that high-protein foods,
which are a source of fat, often leach calcium from the body and thus increase
the risk of bone disease such as osteoporosis.

So, to sum things up on the protein issue, yes, there are
alternatives to meat protein, and no, you do not NEED meat to survive.

Monday, 25 February 2013

I think that everyone, at some point or another, has seen Canada's Food Guide. This guide is
an outline for the recommended daily intake of each food group. The idea is to follow the recommendations in
order to live a healthy life.

For vegetarians, this food guide needs to be altered just
slightly. Since vegetarians will not be
consuming anything in the meat category some substitutions must be made.

Many people assume that if you don’t eat meat you must eat a
lot more fish (in some cases), eggs, cheese and carbohydrates. This is not necessarily true. Vegetarians must properly substitute meat
with foods that will provide their bodies with similar nutrients.

2 – 3 servings per day
1 serving = 1 egg, a small
slice of cheese, a small container of yogurt, a small glass of milk

Fats, sweets and snacks:eat sparingly

The basic vegetarian diet should contain a variety of foods
from each of the above mentioned groups.
The best way to be healthy is to consume nutrient rich foods that your
body can use, as opposed to calorie laden foods that have little to no dietary
benefits.

Friday, 22 February 2013

Vegetarian diets are often known to be “more healthy” than the
typical omnivorous diet. The main reason
being: there is no meat. Meat can be
very high in saturated fat which often contributes to the development of
chronic diseases such as cardiovascular disease and strokes.

Vegetarians are at lower risk of developing these diseases
since they usually eat high quantities of fruits and vegetables which are low
in saturated fat and cholesterol. Jinan
Banna of Livestrong.com says, “Vegetarian diets may be very nutritious if
carefully planned.” This is true; however, vegetarians need to be careful that they adequately substitute for the
protein they do not get from meat. This
is an entire topic of discussion in itself, so I will hold off on the protein
talk until next week.

Banna also says that vegetarian diets “may also be high in
unwanted nutrients and low in those that are needed.” So the question remains – is a vegetarian
diet the more healthy option? I suppose
the answer is still up for debate.

If you are interested in healthy lifestyles and want to
learn more, check out Free to be Fit –
a blog on being active and getting fit.

Friday, 15 February 2013

This message goes out to those of you who cannot seem to
understand that being a vegetarian and being a vegan is not the same
thing. Vegetarianism and veganism are
similar – yes, this is true – however, there are many distinct differences
between the two.

As discussed last week, vegetarians abstain from eating
animal flesh, aka meat. "The Vegetarian Handbook" states that vegetarians survive mainly on plant foods such as fruits, vegetables,
grains, etc.; however, some also consume animal by-products such as eggs and
milk.

Vegans, on the other hand, abstain not only from all animal
foods and by-products, but also from using any products derived from animals, as defined by "The Vegetarian Handbook." Essentially, a vegan is an
extremely strict and emphasized vegetarian.

Many vegan diets are comprised of wholesome, energy-filled
foods. These diets are designed with a
focus on unaltered, unprocessed foods such as raw fruits and vegetables, buts,
seeds and grains. There is little
to no consumption of anything processed; therefore alcohol, coffee, tea, soda
and even tobacco are considered taboo.

Vegetarian and vegan diets are both concerned for the
well-being of animals; however, their commitment and the degree to which they
take action vary. So, to all of you who
think vegetarians and vegans are all the same, hopefully now you will see they
are not.

Source: Null, Gary. The Vegetarian Handbook: eating right for total health. Revised Edition. New York: St. Martin's Griffin, 1996. Print.

Friday, 8 February 2013

It seems to me that a lot of people think there is one
standard definition for a vegetarian and that any variation is not
acceptable. These people are sadly misled
because there are actually several different types of vegetarianism.

Some vegetarians are stricter than others and therefore they
follow a more rigid diet. The most
popular varieties of vegetarianism are ovo-, lacto-, ovo-lacto, semi- and
vegan.

Ovo-vegetarian: includes eggs but not dairy

Lacto-vegetarian: includes dairy but not eggs

Ovo-lacto vegetarian: includes both eggs and dairy

Semi-vegetarian: includes fish and/or free-range poultry

Every one of these diets is similar, except for
semi-vegetarian, in that they exclude all forms of meat. Semi-vegetarians consume fish and/or poultry
because they define meat only as “mammalian flesh”, as defined by Wikipedia.

Vegans are a completely different breed of vegetarian, if
you ask me, but I will discuss that at a later date.

As you can see, not all vegetarians are alike. We all have our reasons for eating, or not
eating, what we do, and there is no right or wrong way to be a vegetarian. Vegetarianism is a personal lifestyle choice
(key word being ‘personal’) and everyone has the right to define the parameters
of their life.

Friday, 1 February 2013

The decision to give up a life of eating meat in exchange
for the vegetarian alternative is a unique experience for everyone. Some of us have been
influenced by a close friend or family member or maybe even a celebrity role
model, while others have been inspired by animal advocacy, religious reasons or the idea of a healthy lifestyle (Thinking about vegetarianism?Becoming Vegetarian). Some vegetarians
contemplate the switch for weeks, months, or maybe even years, whereas others
make their decision based on impulse. Every
story is different and the reasons are endless.

Personally, I was one of those people who made the decision
on a whim. I had had thoughts about the
possibility of giving up meat and pursuing a more herbaceous diet, but I had
never really been serious about making the change. Or so it seemed. One night, while visiting a friend in
Toronto, we got on the topic of animal cruelty and vegetarianism. My friend confessed that she had been
thinking about becoming a vegetarian, and I agreed that the thought had crossed
my mind once or twice. We went for
dinner and when we returned, I experienced an incredible “Ah ha!” moment. This is when I made the announcement that I was going to be a vegetarian.

My new life choice came as a shock to, well, to
everyone. You see, I was known for
loving chicken nuggets and pepperoni pizza, so the news that I had given it all
up was surprising, even to me. Ever
since this moment, my interest in vegetarianism has continued to grow and I am
fascinated to learn about other people who have chosen this lifestyle and what
made them do it.

Friday, 25 January 2013

Welcome to my meat-free
web environment. This is a space for
vegetarians, and others who are open-minded and willing to accept a vegetarian
perspective, to share with one another their daily dilemmas living among our
carnivorous counterparts. This blog will
explore and discuss a number of situations we vegetarians encounter and how we
deal with them. I want to address common
misconceptions about vegetarianism and gain feedback from others on these
untruths. I also want to share my
greatest frustrations in interacting with meat-eaters and trying to explain my
vegetarianism to them, and I would love to hear your stories too. I want this blog to be a discussion forum
where we can all share our experiences, ask questions and learn from one
another. I am really excited about the
ideas I have for this blog and I cannot wait to see what you guys think!!

About Me

Do you ever feel like “they
just don’t understand”? And by “they” I
mean everyone else in the world (or so it would appear). If you can relate to this feeling, I know
what you’re dealing with. My name is
Erin; I am a PR student and a vegetarian.
Living in a predominantly meat-eating society, oftentimes I feel
misunderstood. I constantly feel like I
am defending my choices to those carnivorous beings who cannot fathom the
possibility of living without meat. I have a BA in sociology and I took several animal rights courses that
really opened my eyes to animal cruelty and the meat industry. I have been a vegetarian for over three years
and I find myself constantly wanting to learn more about vegetarianism.